Written by former Senate education staffer and journalist Alexander Russo, This Week in Education covers education news, policymakers, and trends with a distinctly political edge. (For archives prior to January 2007, please click here. For posts after November 2007, please click here.) Comments on this blog are now closed.

By Alexander Russo September 7, 2007 at 9:10 AM

A few weeks ago, word was that she was being sought to head the University of Houston (Spellings For President). Now the rumor is that she wants an even bigger Texas job (Governor Spellings?). Next week, who knows? None of it's likely to pan out, and -- fun as it is to speculate -- it doesn't help her do her job if everyone's focused on where she's going next....

By Alexander Russo September 7, 2007 at 9:08 AM

More Youth Die In Chicago Than Anywhere Else Chicago Reporter Between 2000 and 2005, the Chicago Police Department reported 375 murders or manslaughters of people younger than 18–more than any other police department in America. School District Has Dress Code, and Is Buying the Uniforms, Too NYT Many public schools are supplying their students with an ever-growing list of essentials that go far beyond textbooks. Now they are dressing them, too. Don't pay kids for good grades Christian Science Monitor If we give our children $10 for an A, what's next - an iPod for every goal they score ...

By Alexander Russo September 7, 2007 at 8:53 AM

It might not make much of a difference to Congressman Miller's political calculations, but today's slew of editorial responses to the discussion draft skew against him: Our view on education: Five ways to improve NCLB USA Today The appropriate response, however, isn't to scrap the whole act or to water down its emphasis on reading and math. Really Leaving No Child Behind NYT Mr. Miller’s draft contains some important reforms that deserve to become law, but much of that good will be undermined if states, schools and teachers are not held accountable for the quality of education they provide. ...

By Alexander Russo September 6, 2007 at 4:09 PM

By Alexander Russo September 6, 2007 at 3:45 PM

Feeling a little bit overwhelmed and bored over all this NCLB reauthorization action (already)? Me too. Plus which, I'm too lazy to read everything. So here are some handy-dandy resources to consider, with thanks for all the hard work you've done: What You Should Think About the New Version of No Child Left Behind TQATE "A good accountability system is a fragile thing, and making the law more complex also makes it more vulnerable to those who disagree with the principles themselves." Miller-McKeon draft thoughts Sherman Dorn "The first page is my attempt to cross-reference common criticisms of NCLB with ...